Is ibuprofen superior to indomethacin for patent ductus arteriosus in Japanese preterm infants

BACKGROUND Many clinical trials have indicated that ibuprofen (IBU) has similar effects as indomethacin (IND) on the closure of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) with fewer adverse effects. Owing to the scarce evidence on IBU use in Japan because of its recent approval, we performed this observational study to compare the efficacy and safety of IBU with those of IND. METHODS We included infants (gestational age 0.3 mg/dL, a criterion for acute kidney injury, was less frequent in the IBU group (35.7%) compared with that in the IND group (84.2%, p=0.004). There were no significant differences in echocardiographic changes and jaundice and hypoglycemia incidence rates between the groups. CONCLUSIONS Except for an increase in serum creatinine levels by >0.3 mg/dL, which was less frequent with IBU, IBU had similar efficacy and safety as IND for preterm PDA. IBU and IND should be cautiously administered.